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Home My WebLink AboutThe Citizen, 1986-04-16, Page 18PAGE 18. THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 16, 1986. Bruce farmers develop system for liquid manure without the smell Two Bruce County farmers have overcome the problem of smelly, low value liquid manure with a fairly simple, small device and a lot of knowledge. They have teamed up with natural bacteria to trans- form the liquid from an abnoxious waste into a valuable soil and plant food which has only a faint, earthy smell. Liquid manure rreally became popular with Canadian farmers about 20 years ago. It promised a way to handle large amounts of manure quickly and efficiently, but the problems soon became ob- vious. In the murky depths of the storage pit anaerobic bacteria break down the ingredients of the manure and give off foul and often poisonous gases. Some farmers have put these gases to work, but in most cases they have been some- thing to avoid or to exhaust into the open air. Sludge buildup in tanks also leads to difficulties in pump- ing out the material. Aeration offered an anwer and many machines appeared on the market, all seeming to aim at pumping as much air into the liquid as possible. The effect was to drive off the bad gases as they formed, but the fertilizer value of the remaining liquid was also reduced. Successfully using aerobic bac- teria to break down the smelly, inorganic nitrogen and capture it in an organic form is a very skilled operation. It requires balancing carbon, nitrogen and air ratios and studying all aspects of the manure and treating it accordingly. Lawrence and Philip Andres, of Tiverton Ont., have made a careful study of manure handling tech- niques; both in Canada and in their native Switzerland. Several years ago they started working with a system which they thought would help improve the value of the liquid manure from the 100 plus Hol- steins on their 300 acre organic farm. Now they have joined forces with their neighbour, John Mac- Kinnon, to market this system. These three farmers are very particular about the way all manure is handled on their Tiver- ton farms. They have to be as it's the only fertilizer they use on any of their crops. Solid manure is all composted to improve its value to the soil and to stabilize the nutrients. "If you want to get the most from liquid manure, you can't just blast air through it or keep stirring it in the hope that all the nutrients will be saved," explains Lawrence. "You have to treat the bacteria with respect, because they can turn that pool into one of the best sources of fertilizer on this earth if you give them the right conditions. When they are working well, there is virtually no smell either during the fermentation process or when the liquid is spread on the fields." LIQUID MANURE CAN BE POISONOUS Many farmers and researchers believe the quicker you get liquid manure from storage pit into the ground the more nutrients are saved and the better the plant response. "Notso," says Lawrence Andres. "In fact that smelly liquid you're spreading on the fields, or worse still knifing into the ground, may solve smell problems at the expense of soil life. Ammonia kills worms quickly and it, together with other gases, is very common in poorly fermented liquid manure. You can often see the worms coming to the surface as soon as this type of manure is spread or worked into the soil. They come to the surface because of the liquid flooding the soil and then the gases in the surface layers kill them. You can imagine its effect on the other soil life." HOW THE EDAPHON WORKS Basically, the Edaphon Process- ing System uses a micro -aeration technique to incorporate minute bubbles of air evenly throughout the entire container of liquid manure during calculated time periods. The bubbles are so small that few, if any, are seen to reach the surface. A light foam may be noticed. This is because the air is either absorbed into the liquid, used immediately by bacteria or clings to particles in the liquid. The unit itself consists of a diffusion pump on the end of a long drive shaft and air intake tube. The pump assembly is lowered close to the bottom of the tank. The shaft is driven by a 5 H.P. electric motor. One model allows the farmer to use it as a transfer pump for emptying FARM BY AIR Book now for early application of fertilizers, herbicides and insecticides SERVING WINGHAM, KINCARDINE, BRUSSELS & LISTOWEL Remember - first callers are served first Stardust Aviation Inc. CaII Bob Jamieson - Owner & Operator 357-2599 Bluevale the tank and for filling spreaders. The liquid can be seen to circulate slowly. The idea is not to stir and agitate the manure to mix all the solids into a suspension, but rather to carry minute particles of air to all parts of the liquid so that bacteria can break down the solids and become part of the liquid. The time intervals during which the Edaphon runs are set according to a number of factors including consistency of the manure, the type of feed being used and the presence of feed additives. Law- rence is most concerned that farmers don't just buy a machine, plug it in and forget about it. "We want to work with the farmers who install a machine to make sure it is run the way it should be," he explains. "We have done this with all the machines we have installed during our trial period. Each farm is unique and we want to make sure our system works well in each situation." NUTRIENTS SAVED The aerobic bacteria which convert the inorganic, smelly nitrogen in the ammonia form into organic nitrogen (protein com- pounds) thrive on carbon, nitrogen and air. The proportions of each of these essentials are very impor- tant. Cattle on high grain rations and pig manure is often lacking in carbon and this may have to be added. When the bacteria are growing with the right proportions of the three ingredients they will convert nutrients (especially nitro- gen) into stable forms which will not escape into the air and are less likely to be lost through leaching. Continued on page 28 ��,nHIGH HEALTH �` BOARS & GILTS Low Backfat & Age PUREBRED LANDRACE AND YORKSHIRE Don Henry and Famihj [Herd Health -Classified Good by OMAF] R.R. 1, Bluevale, Ontario NOG 1G0 a M$rnoz_. Phone519-335-3240 We carry a complete line of animal and poultry feeds BULK and BAGGED We also stock animal health products T.B. Allen Ltd. LONDESBORO 482-3363 482-9606 Don't Gamble ... 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